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Monday, February 27, 2017

When I saw the new CAS(E) This Sketch challenge, I went through my leftover pile and found this background panel stamped with MFT's Burlap background using Seabreeze ink by WPlus9. I then stamped a variety of leaves (WP9 Siron Song ink) from WPlus9's Autumn Leaves stamp set after masking off the rounded square center with a thin piece of cardstock. I had to use my MISTI to do repeat stamping. I layered Reverse Confetti's Diagonal Stripes Pretty Panel on top then added the sentiment (Hand Lettered Thanks die by WPlus9) cut from metallic copper cardstock. I adhered the stamped panel to the white base with foam tape to add more dimension.

Can you believe this is the last Monday in February? I don't know about you, but February is my least favorite month, so I'm really ready to march on - lol! Julee has some topsy turvy panels in this week's Mojo Monday sketch. It's been awhile since I used this Strong Anchor stamp set, so I went in search of some nautical paper designs and found them in Authentique's Seaside Collection. I flipped the sketch and moved the string element. Red and navy inks are always difficult for me to get a solid, crisp image when only stamping once. My trusty MISTI came to the rescue where I could stamp the wheel and anchor twice! The sentiment was embossed with white detail embossing powder by Stampendous.

So...we'd love to see how you interpret this challenge! You'll want to post your creation on the Mojo Monday blog. If you need more inspiration, check out the design team's creations below:

Saturday, February 25, 2017

I went with a large gift card tag (die by Reverse Confetti) as my starting point. The stamp set is Delightful and Delicious by Verve.

I decided to adhere it to a card so I could add the woodgrain patterned paper (MME Fiddlesticks 6x6 pad) behind it. The mini coffee splotch stencil by Tim Holtz was used with Crumb Cake ink and the sentiment was stamped by...what else but Early Espresso ink! :-) I also embossed the cup using Early Espresso embossing powder (SU) and paper pieced it.

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

I'm squeaking in under the wire for the MFT Color Challenge and am also using the layout for the Freshly Made Sketches Challenge. I'm also entering this into Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge where anything goes this week. The background was stenciled using a Tim Holtz mini stencil. My intention was to sponge with the Sea Breeze ink color but I unknowingly used a sponge that had some light brown ink on it. :-( No time to fix it since I was so close to the deadline.Here is what I used:STAMPS: Tweet Friends and Flashy Florals - both by MFT.PAPER: Cottage Living by Pebbles.INK: Sea Breeze, Siren Song, Sweet Nectar, Flamingo dye inks by WPlus9; Versafine Onyx Black.DIES: Tweet Friends, Flashy Florals and Stitched Fishtail Flags Die-Namics by MFT; Edge Essentials by Reverse Confetti.

Happy hump day and welcome to another Color Throwdown Challenge! I have always been fascinated by the beauty of succulents and when I saw this week's inspiration photo, I knew that I wanted to watercolor some images from MFT's Sweet Succulents stamp set with matching dies. Here is my take on it...

For the base, I sponged WPlus9 Mojito ink with a Mini Bricks stencil by The Crafters Workshop. While the stencil was still in place, I sprayed with Mister Huey's Blizzard color mist. There's a subtle shimmer IRL that's hard to see in the photo. I added a scallop border (die by Reverse Confetti) of Rich Razzleberry CS which shows up better in the photo below. The cacti were all watercolored using Mijello Mission Gold watercolor paints. You've probably seen Nuvo Jewel Drops throughout papercrafting blogs as it's a hot new item being used. I really love the ease of adding faux enamel drops by using this product! The only downside is that you need to wait 24 hours to ensure they are totally hardened. The fun sentiment was white embossed on black CS.

For more details on how to play along, head over to the Color Throwdown Blog
and you'll find the information on the right sidebar! You canalso
visit the rest of the design team's creations for more inspiration by clicking on the
links below:

Monday, February 20, 2017

I was needing a masculine thank you card, so a CAS sketch was perfect to do a little stenciling in the background and let this butterfly shine as the focal point...literally! I added Peacock Feathers and Twisted Citron distress inks to an acrylic block, then picked up the colors with a wet brush and applied to Ranger watercolor CS. After drying with a heat gun, the butterfly was stamped 3 times using a MISTI and Versafine Onyx Black ink. I sprayed Mister Huey's Blizzard color shine over the butterfly to give it a nice subtle shimmer and shine! The butterfly was die cut then popped with foam tape over the Hero Arts Tweed Pattern stencil. The sentiment die - Wet Paint by PTI - was cut from black and white CS, then offset slightly when I layered them up. Stitched rectangle die is by Lil' Inker Designs.

Good Monday everyone! You'll want to get your creativity going by joining us in the new Mojo Monday Challenge! Julee's sketch is a really fun one and was perfect to build up my birthday stash once again. Nothing says festive like a little sparkle, so I once again grabbed this Citrus Matstack by DCWV which has a mix of glittery papers with the usual matte DP. The flowers were fussy cut from some of the paper and popped with foam dots. The leaves were sponged on the edges with Lucky Limeade ink (SU) and the cupcake has yellow Stickles added to the icing. Some Island Indigo twine (SU) and sequins finished it off. Hate that my photo doesn't show the sparkle and shine that is on the card IRL.STAMPS: Small Packages (Verve).PAPER: Citrus Matstack (DCWV), White (PTI).INK: Versafine Onyx Black.DIES: Small Packages, Butterfly Dreams, Pennant Trim (Verve); Edge Essentials (Reverse Confetti).

So...we'd love to see how you interpret this challenge! You'll want to post your creation on the Mojo Monday blog. If you need more inspiration, check out the design team's creations below:

Sunday, February 19, 2017

I'm running behind on getting cards posted for this fun look at Papertrey Ink stamp sets through the years. In this post, I'm looking at the Wreath For All Seasons stamp set from 2010 that continues to be one of my fave 'go to' sets! Here is my present day look at it...

Saturday, February 18, 2017

Hello everyone and welcome to another Inspired By All The Little Things challenge! I'll have to confess, I had to put my thinking cap on for this one since I didn't have any carnival stamp images to start with a more literalinterpretation. I thought about the intertwining circles that the ferris wheel represents, thus my choice in designer paper (a retired paper pack - Rainbow Sherbet - by SU). Carnivals are a fun and festive atmosphere, so I went with some new MFT dies - Wine Service and Cheers - to create a fun and festive themed card! Little did I know when I chose these dies was that February 18 is National Drink Wine Day - lol! Cheers!

We're thrilled to have Becca Whitham as our guest designer this week! Not only is she a talented papercrafter...she is also an accomplished author as well. Be sure to stop by her Expressions blog and say hello!

We'd love to see how you interpret this inspirational photo! Hope to see you in the gallery!

Thursday, February 16, 2017

It's Friday eve (night before Friday) and that much closer to my 4 day weekend off that will start on Saturday! I couldn't wait to play with a new (to me) cover plate die by MFT....LOVE it! I got my inspiration from Altenew's February Inspiration Challenge photo and knew their Bamboo Rose stamp set with matching dies would work perfectly. I first gold embossed the images, then watercolored using Mijello Mission Gold paints. This was so incredibly quick and easy to complete!

Wednesday, February 15, 2017

It's Wednesday and time for a new Color Throwdown Challenge! Yours truly is the hostess this week and I fell in love with this beautiful piece of pottery for the color inspiration! I'm anxious to see how you will interpret the turquoise, gold/kraft, sage green and dark brown colors. Remember, these are generic colors and you can add in any neutrals of your choice. Here is my take on it...

I started with a background watercolor wash using gold and dark brown paints (Mijello Mission Gold) on Ranger watercolor CS. The larger butterfly background was colored by smooshing Bundled Sage and Peacock Feathers distress inks. The sentiment butterfly was stamped with Peacock Feathers ink. I added a border with metallic gold CS and a die cut (Edge Essentials by Reverse Confetti) from Early Espresso (SU) CS. Some clear dew drops were the finishing touch.

Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Happy Valentine's Day! ❤️ I have a really quick post of a card I created last night after getting off work at 11 PM. It uses the sketch for the Sunday Stamps Challenge and is also for SCS CAS Challenge to use words aka sentiment stamps that carry the whole card. Guess I should have posted a card that is pink or red with lots of hearts - lol - but I was done with hearts for this year and decided a red/orange/yellow combo was due instead! Actually, I couldn't resist breaking into a new paper pad that has a number of glittery patterns (The Citrus Matstack by DCWV). The sentiment die is by Lil' Inker Designs.

I'll leave you with a sweet photo of my youngest grand...isn't she a sweet Valentine treat?!

Monday, February 13, 2017

Good Monday everyone! There's a fun new sketch by Julee for the Mojo Monday Challenge! I was all "hearted out" so went with a floral design instead - lol! I have really been motivated to use up scraps on my mega leftover pile, so the watercolor square was my starting point. The problem with that is that I often don't remember exact colors that were used. I know I used TH distress inks then stamped SU's Off the Grid stamp with Peacock Feathers. There was a day when I rarely made a card that didn't have ribbon or seam binding on it. Now I rarely use it though I still love to see it. Funny how creative tastes change! I die cut the flowers then used my MISTI to center and stamp the images. The leaves were die cut from white CS then I took the Lime green ink cube (Reverse Confetti) and sponged over them. The flowers were inked up with RC's Aqua ink. Again...my MISTI was used to stamp the sentiment twice for a more vivid shade of black.

Saturday, February 11, 2017

Another Saturday has rolled around, so that means there's a new Inspired By All The Little Things challenge! I especially loved this inspiration photo with the pop of bright pink against black and white! I immediately went for my Quatrefoil Cover Plate die for the background. Since the die is by Papertrey Ink, I went with their Peonies on Parade stamp set with matching dies. I black embossed the images then watercolored with Mijello Mission gold paints. The round mirror in the photo inspired me to add a circle element using silver foil cardstock by SU. The sentiment die - Swoosh by PTI - was also cut from the silver foil CS.

Friday, February 10, 2017

I finally got to play with the new layout for the February Sketch For You To Try challenge over on the Reverse Confetti blog. I needed another Valentine for a grandchild, and wanted to color another koala bear from RC's Bear Hugs stamp set with coordinating dies. Here's what I used...STAMPS: Bear Hugs (Reverse Confetti).PAPER: True Love 6x6 pad by Reverse Confetti; Piggy Bank, Flamingo CS by RC; White CS by PTI; X-Press It Blending Card.INK: Memento Tuxedo Black.DIES: All Framed Up (RC); Love Note (RC); Wreaths (RC); Bear Hugs (RC); Stitched circle die by Lil' Inker Designs.

Welcome to my blog...an online journal of my paper crafting hobby. When I'm not in my stamp room, I'm probably working at my full-time job as a rehabilitation RN. I'm so happy to have you visit my blog and I appreciate when you take time to comment!

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Color Throwdown Design Team

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MY SPLITCOASTSTAMPERS GALLERY

OCC: Watercolor for Card Makers

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Happy to be published! Pg. 66

Check out page 76 - I have another card published! Great issue for so many masculine card ideas!